The Local Flavor
by FloodFeSTeR
Summary: "Darlin I don't bite," she purred. "Well, unless your into that." Goggle/OC - Lizard/OC.
1. Chapter 1

_Ooooh my first Goggle fic, I'm gonna have a lot of fun with this. I know everyone's used to Goggle being sweet, but I'm adding my own twist to it. This is definetly for Shiloh Beagle, who without her help I wouldn't have ever really thought of this. Remember everyone this is a PREFACE, it' supposed to be short. Lyrics belong to Angus and Julia Stone._

**_The Local Flavor_**

The hot desert sun, buzzard cries, crow calls and the rumble of an engine.

_**Haven't felt my heart beat in fifteen years...**_

_**I haven't felt my heart beat...**_

_**Since I saw you standing there...**_

She stands straight, face contorting as she cringes into a backwards arch, facial muscles relaxing as her vertebrae give a few pops of relief that spread through her slowly. She stares down at the engine in front of her with minor agitation, wiping her forehead with the back of her gloved right hand before she bends back in to start working again. A thick strand of white hair slides past her face and she jerks her hand up to press it up behind her ear where it sticks with sweat. She hums with the radio by her feet, boot tapping at the dust as her temper rises when her wrench slips.

**_Love is not a war that I have got to fight..._**

**_When in this life..._**

**_What I can't love right..._**

**_I, I haven't got what I need from you_**

The shimmer of the lens betrays a location against the red rock canyon peak, the binpculars tapping against the rocks so they tumble down the slope he perches on. He shouldn't be doing this, she had gotten onto him for this, but he couldn't help himself, it's what he's donr his whole life. He mutters something under his breath, barely audible to his own ears, but his brain gets the message.

_**A purple skivvy remark...**_

_**You know what they are...**_

_**Memories attached to photographs...**_

She slams the hood down to the old dusty Mustang, satisfied with today's work, and she tosses her wrench and oil rag into a small bag of tools. "Hey Jeb, I'm goin home!"

No answer, but then she hears him from the back of his shit store. "Alright, get on now 'fore it gets dark."

She waves him off though he can't see her, and a soft smile graces her lips, knowing she was under a very watchful, safe gaze. Whether his concern was for her or himself at nightfall, no one could say. Sometimes she wondered if she knew what she ran with at night, maybe he was in denial. Either way, she liked to pretend the concern was for her. She snatched up her radio, not bothering to turn it off, and climbed into her antique, smiling at the purr he got when she started the engine.

_**I'm one of those girls...**_

_**Who carries on the lie...**_

_**I'm one of those people...**_

_**Who never got the facts right...**_

"I'm home!" she calls through a slighlty buzzing house, tools and radio lrft by the door.

She likes to pretend everything is normal, to the rest of the house everything is. Hair loosened from the bun at the nape of her neck, she shakes it with her long fingers, sighing her way up the stairs. She hates the heat, but it's routine now. Avoid or adapt. That's just what you do.

_**I, I haven't got what I need...**_

_**From you...**_

_**What I need, from you...**_

_**What I need...**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**I'll be glad when you dead, you rascal you...**_

Long fingers tapped against the edge of the chipped leather, foot lifted from the gas pedal as the cruise control kicked again. A cigarette balanced between the teeth, bobbing with a tongues ministration. She reached up and brushed her hair back, the white catching the sun for a moment before it was over cast with a dark cloud. Her eyes flickered up to the dark clouds, teeth worrying her bottom lip. That was all she needed, slick roads with no attention span.

Julia had no attention span, she wasn't born with one. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and looked over at the curving mountains to her right, taking the cigarette from her mouth as she kind of got lost in the landscape. She hadn't been out here in ten years. Her father, Jeb, owned a gas station out in this little (big) middle of nowhere, and she was staying for a few days on her way to Bakersfield, California to sell her old antique that was on the trailer she was pulling. She was a diehard mechanic and collector, but she had to sell the car. It was falling a part and she didn't have the resou4ces to get it fixed at the moment, it deserved better. These people she was selling to, the Wilkins, had all the resources and the same obsession as her.

_Perfection._

She blinked and slowly pressed on the brakes, noticing she had passed the dusty gas station. She smiled when she pulled into the gas station, seeing her father slouched in an old lawn chair, half empty of sun warmed whiskey by his feet, het laid across his chest. She opened the door, flicking away her cigarette, and got a good chuckle when he jumped. He scrambled in fear, a handgun magically appearing, and then promptly dissapearing when he saw her standing beside the truck, decked out in a grease stained red jumpsuit.

"Weren't supposed ta be here til Saturday," he grumbled, hobbling up to her.

Julia's brow scrunched in concern. "What's wrong with your ankle?"

His eyes set in worry but he just waved her off, straightening his back. "It's nothin, jus' hurt maself helpin a customer with his truck the other day. What's under the sheet?"

Julia grinned and walked over, pulling up the sheet so he could see the angel wing hood. "It's a car I got from an old man that lives around my place."

"She's a beaut, this th' one yer sellin?"

She ran her fingertips over the hood, a nostalgic smile on her lips. "Yeah, I can't keep her up anymore."

Silence passed between them for a good ten minutes before Jeb cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck, ryes on the horizon. "So uh...how long ya gonna be here?"

Julia looked up, one eyebrow raised slightly. "Maybe three days, I got some things I need to tinker with on the truck firat. You got a shower in there?"

He nodded. "Only clean place in the joint. Get in there and I'll get yer bags."

She smiled and pat his shoulder. "Thanks Jeb."

He flinched as she passed, watching her back until she was in the store. Whatever happened to Dad or Pa? He grumbled and opened the drivers door, reaching for the bags. "Clarisa musta got to her."

**0000**

Julia stepped out of the tiny bathroom she would be haring with er father, sighing intk the cool desert air that filled the store, a good change from the stuffy steam of the bathroom. She tightened the towel around her slight frame as sh grabbed her cigarettes from one of her bags, stepping out of the store as she lit it. She tucked the lighter into the pack between the cigarettes and plopped down into the chair her father had been in when she had arrived, crossing her legs. She kept her cigarette clamped between her lips and reached up, braiding her hair over her left shoulder.

She looked over at the red mountains, slightly distinguished against the background of black stars. She had forgotten how beautiful it was put here at night, it almost made up for the heat during the day. She pulled her cigarette from her lips and blew the smoke up towards the stars.

"Julia?"

She looked over at the front door. "Out here."

Jeb poked his head out, eyes flickering around nervously. "Whatcha doin out here?"

She shrugged and held up her cigarette to him. "Smpking, and it's pretty damn beautiful tonight."

"Why don't ya come inside?"

She stared at him blankly. "Why don't you ckme out here?"

He grumbled. "Come on, seriously."

She waved her hand at him. "I'll be back inside when I'm done. You ot any food?"

"Not really...I'll look for something."

"Yeah why don't you go do that..." she muttered as he walked back inside.

Why was he so paranoid? Maybe he was afraid she would bet bitten by a rattlesnake or stung by a scorpion. It had almost happened once, a long time ago. She had left her back pack on the same chair she was sitting in and a rattlesnake had climbed right in. Jeb had caught it before anything happened and tossed it (literally) into the desert.

_'Name...'_

Julia jumped at the sound of the static voice, looking around with wide eyes. Her brow scrunched when he saw a hand held radio tucked behind a few tires leant up against the side of the store. She looked around for a moment and then shrugged, standing. She tucked her cigarette into the corner of her mouth and crouched down, picking up the radil.

"Hello?"

A few moments passed. _'Name...'_

She smiled a little, not bothered by the strangeness of this all. "My name's Julia, what's yours?"

Silence.

Her brow scrunched. "Hello?"

Nothing still. Julia stood and stared at the radio for a long time, the smell of beans not even registering in her head until Jeb called her name. She blinked out of her reverie and smiled, puttin out her cigarette as she jogged over to the door, radio hidden behind her back.

* * *

><p><em>I'm sorry for any misspells or grammar mistakes. I typed this up on my phone with no spell check.<em>


	3. Chapter 3

"What the hell ya mean ya aren't leaven today?!"

Julia looked up slowly from the bowl of stale Kix, a small drop of milk sliding down her chin, and she slurped up the bite, talking around it with her chin jutted out. "I ain't finished."

Jeb glared from the open door of the gas station. "What ain't finished? Ya said everything was finished last night."

Julia wiped her chin and swallowed, setting her bowl down on the checkout counter. "There were a few things I had to check out first, I can't just go riding around with some things unfixed Dad."

Jeb hesitated when she said his name, not Jeb, but Dad. He rubbed the back of his neck and then set his jaw. "Ya can't stay another day, ya hafta go."

She glared at him. "Why? You don't want me around?"

He stuttered for a moment then waved his hands. "N-No, Jules it ain't –"

"No fuck this," she slid from the stool and zipped up her jumpsuit. "I'm goin for a walk."

She pushed past him rougher than she usually would have, but he just pissed her off to the max. She left him stuttering as she stomped out into the desert, fiddling with her cigarette pack in her anger. He didn't want her around? Fine, after this walk she would be going the fuck home. She regretted calling him Dad. Julia looked over her shoulder, at the old gas station, and then grit her teeth, beginning her stomping manner again. She knew it was childish to act this way, but dammit she just wanted to stay one more day. She had this feeling that he was hiding something from her, but what could he be hiding? She was the only skeleton in his closet she knew of, and it wasn't like he was a super secretive guy, except to total strangers and that was totally reasonable of course.

Julia paused in the shadow of a tall red clay pillar, lighting her cigarette and then stuffing the Zippo and pack back into her left pocket of her jumpsuit. She pulled the cigarette from her lips and looked around at the landscape for a moment, wandering why she hadn't seen any wildlife yet. It was the desert, there should be something running around her? A lizard, a coyote, a fucking jack rabbit? Her brow furrowed and she leaned back against the pillar, cigarette balanced gently between her fingers so to not squish the tobacco around too much.

To be honest…Julia didn't want to leave because she wanted to find the source of that voice she had heard on the radio the other day. Sure she was a little bothered by the fact that someone was watching her, a man most of all, but she was mostly curious as to why. If they were solid creepers wouldn't they have just continued to watch her, or come at her directly when she was defenseless and in her towel? Yeah, so who the hell were they? Of course she would get weird calls through a radio out in the middle of nowhere. Now to who the calls were coming from…that was a juicy little adventure for her. She hadn't been out here in the desert since she was a little girl, and she barely remembered those days. Everything had grown and expanded, it all looked even bigger than it did then, and Julia loved exploring. You could say she was still a little kid at heart.

"_Name?"_

Julia screamed and pushed away from the rock, running a few feet before she turned around and noticed whoever had just spoken to her was now lying face first in the dirt, groaning around red sand. Julia dropped her cigarette and lifted a shaky hand to hold over her chest, her breathing rapid, and she swallowed heavily. She reached down for the bowler hat that had rolled to her feet and held it close to her chest.

"Y-You were the one through the radio the other day…" she muttered, crouching down beside their head.

He had stopped moving, and if Julia didn't know any better she would have thought he was dead. He didn't look up to her words, just laid there, and after a moment Julia reached down and began poking the side of his head. If there was one thing Julia was good at, it was annoying people. True, she shouldn't be annoying a stranger that had talked to her through the radio and had now been following her, but she figured what the hell, she _had_ come to find him and here he was.

"Hello? Are you alive?"

His left hand darted up and snatched away the bowler hat. Julia screamed and fell back onto her rump, scrambling back as he jumped to his feet and pressed the bowler hat down on his head. There was a bandana tied around his face, leaving only his eyes to be seen out of his facial features. They were strange looking, the darkest eyes Julia had ever seen, but something was off about him. He stared at her a moment longer before he scrambled back up the rocks, disappearing over the slope. Julia grit her teeth and jumped to her feet, following up behind him.

"Like hell I'm gonna just let you get away!"

She slipped and scraped her way behind him. He moved so easily around the rocks, Julia was slightly amazed, but more than anything she was angry. First her father tells her to leave, and then this bastard is gonna catch her interest and disappear? Oh hell no. But then again, was this what her father was worried about? He finding this mysterious person? Maybe she should stop, think a few moves ahead and decided if this was a good idea or not. Maybe she should wander why there was just some random man in the desert, moving so agile against the crumbling rocks, why he had known she was beside that radio, why he had contacted her through it. But of course she doesn't, Julia has never thought ahead of any plans she had made, and like hell that was going to start now.

And then she went tumbling down.

Julia screamed and scrambled, her fingers digging into the crumbling ground as her boot slipped and gravity tried to take her down the now thirty foot drop. A tear came from the corner of her eyes and she almost closed them, but she didn't, and kept scrabbling for a hold. Anything, to stop her from falling. Bad idea, it was all a bad idea, and now she was gonna die.

Or not.

Julia paused in her whimpering enough to notice she wasn't falling anymore, and that someone was holding onto her wrist. She looked up, jaw slightly slack, and watched the bandana slip away from a set jaw. Her large eyes widened impossibly further, and Julia now understood why he had run from her.


	4. Chapter 4

"H-Holy shit," Julia stuttered, still dangling from the cliff edge.

He closed his eyes for a moment and then almost let her drop, but she reached up as fast as she could and dug her long nails into his jumpsuit. If he tried to let her go, he was going down with her, and Julia seriously doubted he would make the fall even if he was…_whatever_ the hell he was. A mutant? That looked like what he was, what else would he be? He grunted as he tried to keep Julia's weight up along with his without going down. But guess what? It didn't work. And you wanna know why? Because a fucking _hand_ came out of the rock wall. Rough fingers wrapped around her ankle and tried to pull her in through the opening but she screamed and started kicking.

"Please! Please let me go!"

A sick laugh came from the wall, immediately sending a trill up Julia's spine. She felt the tears flowing down her cheeks, but she couldn't sob. She couldn't even breathe after locking eyes with the mutant holding her up. He looked hesitant. He didn't know whether to drop her or pull her up. _Are you fuckin kidding me? _Julia grit her teeth and swallowed her fear, digging those fingers of her into his arm. She tried to hoist herself up like that, but the grip on her ankle was a force to be reckoned with. The laugh was still making her spine prickle but she wasn't going to just let them take her wherever they had planned to. She quickly pulled her hand from his arm and latched her nails into the rock wall. She managed to get her leg bent enough to drive her knee where she knew someone's face would be. Julia grinned in sick satisfaction as a howl came through the air and then scrambled up the wall as their grip was gone from her leg.

She pushed the mutant back and landed on her hands and knees, eyes closed as she panted into the hot rocks. When she heard shuffling in the rocks her head shot up, eyes set to a glare through the sweaty curtain of her hair. She hurried to her feet and pretty much tackled the mutant to the ground, forcing him to land on his stomach while she straddled his lower back, her hands planted flat against his shoulder blades.

"You son-of-a-bitch, you were gonna let me fall," Julia panted, closing her eyes again. She was so tired. "What the hell is your name?"

He waited a long time before he answered, and when he did it was a simply mumble. "Goggle."

She stared at the back of his head for a moment longer and then she gave out a tired huff, lying down across his back, arms dangling into the sand. "My name is Julia…now I'm going to sleep."

"Y-You're on ma back."

She grimaced but didn't try to get up. "You almost got me killed…I'm going to sleep."

* * *

><p>Julia rolled under the sun warmed blanket, the sunlight bathing over her shining through her thin lids. She reached up and covered her eyes as she sat up, stretching her arms around above her head before she pulled the blanket off of her. She slid out of bed and looked out the window, seeing the red sand twisting through the wind. Her brow furrowed and then she shrugged, walking to the door and opening it.<p>

"Hey Jeb! You wouldn't believe this fucking dream I had," she called.

But she was met with silence. And that was when Julia took in her surroundings. She was most definitely _not _in the gas station. Jeb was not in the other room cooking lunch, there was not rattling air conditioner or the constant smell of oil and gasoline. She was on the second floor of a dusty house, an old house by the looks of things. The wallpaper along the small balcony she was on was an old-styled floral pattern and was peeling along the ceiling jam. Julia was beginning to panic a little bit. She looked around for a moment, hands coming up to her chest like a frightened child, and she started down the stairs to her left.

Everything was covered in dust downstairs as well. Old pictures were scattered along the walls and the tables in what could only be the living room. Julia swallowed the lump in her throat and then looked to her right, hearing a door squeaking shut, or open. She locked eyes with a young woman, maybe a few years older than her. She was standing in front of a swinging kitchen door, two plates of some type of meat in both of her hands. She wore a simple camisole nightdress, long raven hair tied up in a messy bun atop her head. She was riddled with scars and looked like she had been through a fire because of the burn marks up her arms and legs.

"Oh um…hmm," the woman unfroze, bright green eyes looking down before she smiled. "You Julia?"

Julia nodded hesitantly, terrified. "Um…yeah, and you are?"

"Oh right," the young woman looked to her left, down a short hallway. "Lizard! Come get this shit!" Julia heard a grunt come from some room and then she caught the young woman's smile. "My name is Veronica, call me Val though. Oh, and don't freak out."

"Wha-"

Julia's words were cut off as a…man (?) stepped out from under the stairs. He was spindly and tall, his eyes a piercing blue and his hair wild, the color gray. He had a twisted cleft than ran up to his cheek bone and his jaw was crooked, the teeth jumbled into an upside down V on his upper jaw, following behind the cleft. His eyes ran over Julia and he grunted, taking the plates from Val's hands. The young woman reached out and clasped on his shoulder for a moment before he shrugged her off and disappeared behind the stairs again.

Julia finally closed her mouth, helping the dryness from her lips. "What the…what was that?"

Val smiled a little. "Figured that…that's Lizard, my husband."

"Husband," Julia asked in disbelief.

Val nodded and crossed her arms over her chest. "Yeah, we got married last year. But enough about that, Goggle said you attacked him."

Julia narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, he was going to drop me over the edge of a cliff."

Val's lips popped into an O. "So you're the one Lizard was trying to catch!"

A sick feeling shot through Julia's stomach. "What?"

"Lizard went out huntin' yesterday and said he almost caught someone on the cliffs near the mines, must have been y- holy shit!"

Julia crumpled to the floor, holding her head in her hands as she groaned. "Jeb was right," she mumbled.

Val crouched down beside Julia, running her fingers across her forehead. "Holy shit, are you ok?"

Julia shook her head. "No…no I'm not. Jeb told me I needed to leave, I almost got killed by your husband and now…now I feel like I'm gonna be sick."

Val chuckled. "Honey, the worst hasn't even happened yet."


	5. Chapter 5

_**4:17 p.m. – 3/29/14**_

_Gah Goggle is so much fun to write on. He's a better mixture of crazy and cute. Sorry if I slip up with the third person view, I just have no real experience with it, I usually do first person._

_R&R please, flames and praise alike are welcome._

* * *

><p>Val was right, the worst hadn't happened yet.<p>

The next thing that happened, Julia met Big Brain.

Now, Julia had seen some horrible things in her life, more things than she would ever care to admit, but this was just a whole nother level of horrible.

He was curled in on himself, arms held tight to his chest, and he was shaking constantly. His eyes were small and beady, even more so compared to his bulbous head that hung off of the back of his wheelchair. The hair that he had was wet with sweat and his skin had a thick sheen of sweat on it though it was rather cool in the house everyone (meaning Val, Lizard, Big Mama and Ruby) claimed was his. His eyes were glued to the young mechanic the moment she walked into the living room and she had never felt so sick. Julia leaned heavily on Val while she chuckled in her ear, patting the young woman's clammy arm as she brought her to the couch that was across from Big Brain and his wheelchair.

"Human-"he wheezed painfully. "Filth."

"Big Brain be nice," Val threatened.

He chuckled and lifted a shaky finger, pointing it at the two women. "You…you are no –"he wheezed again. "Better than her. Both…disgusting humans."

Big Mama's hand came down hard on his left shoulder, successfully silencing him. "You will be kind to the both of them," she said through clenched teeth. "Papa will be angry if he hears about how you are treating them."

"Then – wheeze – why did you bring them to me?"

"Because we thought it would be nice for her to meet the whole family," Val said simply. "You don't have to be such a prick about it."

"If…if it were up ta me," he paused to choke on something stuck in his throat, his whole body stuck in a spasm for a good ten minutes before he spoke again. "Woulda had ya both fer break…breakfast."

That sent Julia's stomach into a few summersaults, making everything ring. "No," she breathed, her hands shaking.

He laughed the best he could, being cut off by the sounds of his own phlegm coming up on him. "Oh yeah…ya tender, know that much."

Julia jumped to her feet. She had to get out of there, she had to get away from him. She pushed past Ruby and Lizard rather roughly, hearing the male mutant spit out a few curse words at her touching and handling of him. Julia didn't care. She wanted to get out of this desert, she wanted to get that car sold and she would take a fucking plane home. She wasn't thinking as she started out towards the desert, towards nothing. Julia didn't even know if she was going in the right direction or not. She didn't care. She just didn't fucking care anymore. After a few more minutes of mental ranting, Julia stopped. She came to a complete, pointless, stop and then looked over her shoulder. The village was far behind her, she had been moving faster than she had previously thought. She was a good three miles from the place. That seemed good enough to catch her bearings.

So Julia wandered around for another moment or two, finding a rock to lean on, and she sat in the desert sand, not bothered by the heat one bit. She pointed her knees up towards the sky and patted her pockets, looking for her cigarettes but she didn't find them. Of course she didn't, they were back in that village, with those mutants. Julia wasn't a judgmental person, but this was just too much.

It only took her a second to realize she was being watched.

She lifted her head and moved only her eyes, looking for who was watching her. No glint from the mountains, but there was a dark lump on the other side of a rock a ways off from her. She rolled her head back raising an eyebrow, and then she cleared her throat.

"Ya know, you're not really good at hiding."

Their shoulders shook a little and then they peaked over the edge of the rock they were behind and Julia instantly recognized the mutated face. Goggle.

She narrowed her eyes at him as he stood, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "S-Sorry."

"It's your fault I'm here," she said gruffly. "Could be back at Jebs, but oh no you just had to bring me home."

"Sai' sorry," she heard him say as he moved closer.

"Not sorry enough," she quipped. "First you almost get me killed and then this? This whole trip was just one big fuck up," she ranted without any response from him. "Well guess what, you're gonna bring me back to the gas station, got me?"

He looked at her with wide eyes and then he nodded, looking as though he were going to protest or say something else but he just clamped his mouth shut. Julia nodded sternly and then she scrambled to her feet, pulling the zipper of her jumpsuit down to her navel and she shrugged her arms out of it. Why was she getting so hot all of the sudden? The heat never usually bothered her. Thank god she had the foresight to put on a sports bra under the damn thing.

"Lead the way buddy," she griped.

He finally grumbled them, doing as she instructed and leading her forward towards open desert.

* * *

><p>Julia wasn't really all too happy with seeing the gas station. Of course, it was better than a village of mutants.<p>

The lights were on inside and Julia could see Jeb's shadow moving through the fog on the windows, probably made from the cool night air and the heater he had going inside. Julia had pulled up her jumpsuit by then, the sun setting behind her and Goggle. He was off to her right, keeping as much distance between them as possible. He was smarter than he looked. She wasn't surprised when the door swung open to the gas station, but Jeb charger out with a buckshot ready did surprise her.

But what really surprised Julia, what surprised all of them, was that she threw herself in front of Goggle, shielding him from the end of Jeb's rifle.

"The hell is wrong with you," she growled, feeling the heat rolling off of Goggle against her back.

"This why I told ya ta leave yesterday," Jeb shook his head, waving the barrel of his gun around in the air. "Now get outta ma way."

Julia's temper flared impossibly higher and she took a step back towards Goggle. "Why? So you can shoot him?"

He nodded, jaw set sternly. "Ain't gonna let them take ma daughter, no matter how much ya hate me."

Julia's face slackened and she lowered her arms a little. "Hate you?"

He nodded again, slowly lowering his gun. "Know ya don't like me, don't have to say anything," the fire sparked through his eyes again. "But I ain't gonna let them get to ya, done with 'em."

Julia raised her arms again. "Goggle was walking me home, Lizards' the one you should be shooting. He tried to kill me. Goggle was just saying hi, he was curious. Stop pointing that thing at us."

"Ya met Lizard?"

Julia noted the shocked look on his stubble covered face. "Y-Yeah…he's not as bad as I thought but he was still pretty scary."

Jeb looked her over. "Don't tell me ya like any of em."

Julia's cheeks flared red for some reason. "I-I…whatever I do or feel is none of your business…I just want to go to bed," she turned around to Goggle, smiling in an apologetic way. She opened her mouth to speak and then she narrowed her eyes, looking over at Jeb. "Do you mind?"

He stared at her in disbelief for a moment before he shook his head, throwing the shotgun over his shoulder and turning towards the gas station. "Stubborn ass kid," he muttered, walking towards his home.

Julia rolled her eyes and then looked back to Goggle. "I guess I should say I'm sorry."

He looked at her quizzically from under the edge of his bowler hat. "W-Why?"

"For tackling you, chasing after you, being so mean when you were just curious…so I'm sorry."

He stared at her for a long time, obviously confused and still a little curious. "Ish ok," he mumbled. "Don' blame ya. Ain't exactly th' friendliest folk…"

Julia grinned. "Oh, some of you are plenty friendly. Look," she bent at the waist a little, trying to see under the rim of his hat better. "I don't hold anything against _you_, Big Brain and Lizard were the ones that scared the fuck out of me. But one word of advice," he finally met her eyes. "Don't drop a girl from a cliff, bad ice breaker."

He raised his head fully, allowing Julia to stand straight again. "Ice breaka? Why we tryin' ta break ice?"

Julia actually laughed at that, feeling the tension from the day uncoiling from her shoulders. "It doesn't mean breaking ice literally, like…it means it's not a good way to start a conversation or an encounter with someone else. Understand?"

It took him a moment but he finally nodded and then Julia jumped, hearing Jeb's voice cursing inside the gas station. He sure knew how to break a mood. Wait, what mood was he breaking? Julia thought on it for a moment and realized something. Her cheeks heated up and her hands reached up, covering her mouth. Holy shit, Julia thought, I was _flirting _with him. Oh God, she started to freak out mentally, waving her hands around as she took two steps back, pacing for a moment as she tried to calm herself down. She got so worked up so easily she hadn't even noticed it.

"Julia ok?"

She stopped then, remembering Goggle was right there. "Oh! I am so sorry," she apologized, placing both hands on either side of her face and shaking her head enough for her hair tie to loosen. "I just…I just had a little revelation and it freaked me out a little bit."

"Revelation?"

She didn't stop shaking her head. "I just realized what I was doing…Oh my God how can I be so stupid?"

Stupid? Well, that wasn't exactly the right word. Julia had to have seen something in him to make her flirt, even if it was a miniscule moment of flirting at that. She raised her eyes back to him, seeing him eyeing her curiously, head half cocked to the right and reminding her strongly of an owl. Julia swallowed and lowered her hands, her curiosity getting the better of her and she looked back towards the gas station. Jeb was watching through the windows. She swallowed thickly and looked back to Goggle, smiling a little.

"Y-You think you can come over in the morning?"

He was as caught off guard as she was. "What?"

She chuckled nervously. "I mean, if you don't want to that's ok. I just don't know my way back to the village is all…"

"Why ya wanna go back there?"

She smiled at him honestly. "Cus…I guess I want to get to know you guys or something before I leave. Well, we can exclude Big Brain and Lizard."

Goggle stared at her for a long time, making her nervous with his alien eyes, and then he nodded, turning his back on her. Was that a yes? He would come by in the morning to take her back to the village? Julia stared after him for a moment longer and then she turned towards the gas station, hurrying inside before the night time chill tried to get to her. As she shut the door she pressed her forehead against the door jam, her fingers still curled around the knob and her other hand pressed flat against the glass.

"What took ya so long?"

She jumped away from the door, holding both of her hands over her chest. Jeb was staring at her in a slightly angered way, but more nosey curiosity. She swallowed thickly and shook her head, walking towards the back of the store. "Just talked to Goggle is all," she stepped around the counter, pulling a pack of cigarettes from the rack and stuffing it into her back pocket. "Don't worry about it. I'm gonna go take a shower."

He didn't say anything else so she took that as him leaving her alone for the night and she stepped into the back room. She grabbed her duffle of clothes and walked into the small bathroom they were sharing for the moment. She sat the duffle on the counter and shrugged out of her jumpsuit, turning on the water. She looked herself over in the mirror, seeing a few cuts and bruises across her cheeks and shoulder, some on her legs, but they weren't much. She could wear what she wanted this time and not look like a total grease monkey. Julia sighed and stepped into the shower, wetting her hair and then sliding down into the bottom of the tub.

She doubted she was going to make it to California.

* * *

><p>Val sighed and lay back in the dusty bed, propping her feet up on Lizards chest as he laid at the bottom of the bed, his head and legs hanging off either end of the bed. He grunted and looked up at her when the weight hit his chest, his eyes narrowing into an icy glare but she just ignored it, staring at him blankly. He sighed himself after a moment and let his head lay back again, eyes closing.<p>

"Think she'll come back," Val questioned.

"Don't care."

She pursed her lips. "Oh come on, you gotta care a little," she nudged his chin with her toe, grinned when he swatted away the appendage. "Goggle likes her, Goggle never likes anyone."

"Don't care."

"He's your brother."

"Still don' care."

Val rolled her eyes. She still hated that stubborn, ignorant, attitude Lizard had. "You are just such a prick," she muttered.

"I try," he muttered.

Val was thinking about Julia, trying to picture her with Goggle. It was a weird fit, but they did fit. Maybe. Val didn't know Julia, didn't know anything about her or where she came from. Val didn't even know if she was staying or not. Goggle knew more about her, Val had known he was watching her since she arrived the other day, he had walked her back to the gas station. If Julia stayed, Val would have to help her get used to the others. She had to tell her what not to do, how to handle Goggle. But Val didn't want to ruin the image Julia most likely had of quiet Goggle.

* * *

><p><em>Boom, there it is. Longest chapter yet I think and they will just keep getting longer.<em>


	6. Chapter 6

_The hospital always had a sick smell to it, no matter what floor Julia was on._

_She shuffled in front of the receptionists' desk, eyes puffy and red from a three day crying binge. The blonde woman, bags under her eyes and way too much violet eye shadow around her lids, looked up at Julia with a bored and aggravated look. Julia didn't blame her whole heartedly, for being aggravated with the teary eyed mechanic, Julia was having a hard time lifting her voice high enough for anyone to hear._

"_Speak up again, sweetheart," the receptionist – her name plate said Rebecca Dedaux – repeated for perhaps the third time in the past minute. "I have other people waiting behind you."_

_Julia looked over her shoulder, seeing a few disgruntled patients waiting in the crunchy, sea foam blue waiting chairs. She jumped a little and looked back to the receptionist. "I came to see Debra Westwick. Room 77 I think."_

_The receptionist nodded, turning to her computer and typing away for a moment. "She just had her medication delivered," she turned back to Julia. "You can head on up, just check in right here," she pulled out a wooden clipboard and laid it in front of Julia, placing a pen in her hand. "And then we have all we need."_

_Julia nodded mutely and signed her name in perfect print, leaving behind a tear drop before she turned around the oval shaped desk and started towards the elevators. She waited behind to overweight women who were prattling on about their atrocious hair styles, until the elevator to their right opened up. Julia hung behind while they climbed into the elevator; she wanted to be by herself so she could weep for a moment alone before she went to her mother's room. The doctor, Steven Malloy, said her mother only had – at most – a week left in the hospital before she would be moved to a retirement home where she could pass away peacefully. It was set for the very act of letting someone die. He hadn't called it a retirement home, but that was how Julia saw it and that was what it seemed like. Well, it really seemed like a morgue, a waiting room for the dead, and Julia wouldn't go. This was the last time Julia would see her mother, her mother's care taker for the past three months, Elizabeth, would be coming tomorrow to pick her up and wait with her mother in the home._

_They were almost friends, if Debra remembered her._

_Julia looked up through the tears when she heard a ding and an elevator opened in front of her. It was empty and cold. She stepped into it and pressed the button that would take her to the fourth floor. Where they kept the elderly. Her mother wasn't an old woman, she had just turned 42, that wasn't old. To everyone here, it was apparently. To everyone but her, it was. So what she had dementia? It ran early in her family, Julia wished her own family could see that. Her aunt Cassie was beginning to succumb to it. She was only 33. Julia was waiting for it to come for her. She was waiting for that horrible thing to come for her. She wouldn't fight it like her mother tried to, she would just kill herself. _

_She let her head hand and watched a few tears hit against the toe of her boot. When the doors opened, she swiped away the tears on the cuff of her jumpsuit and she pointed her chin higher, stepping out of the elevator. She didn't have to put on a show here, everyone tried when they visited their loved ones, they could see through a façade like hers._

_Julia smiled at the worn nurse that left her mother's room. She didn't have a name tag, her scrubs had been replaced with a dark patterned dress and she had black hair with fresh wrinkles in her face. Julia's heart almost stopped. For a moment, the nurse was an angel of death. Julia watched the woman wheel away the medication cart and then she looked into the room, seeing her mother seated on the edge of her bed, staring at the curtains of her window. Julia swallowed around the painful lump in her throat, pinching her cheeks a few times to get the color going again, and then she stepped into the room._

_She shut the door quietly behind her and unzipped the top of her jumpsuit, tying the sleeves together around her waist and she walked over to the curtains. She gripped the edges and pushed them open, seeing the bustling city of Atlanta beneath them. She smiled a forced smile and turned around to her mother, who was staring at her in confusion. Julia was a mirror image of her mother. _

_Deeply freckled, sun kissed skin. Vibrant copper hair, big blue-green eyes. A pointed nose. She was beautiful, her mother, but Julia always thought there was nothing truly special about herself. She didn't have the same charisma her mother had with other people. She didn't have that same buoyant laugh that got everyone else going._

_But her mother had lost those things since the dementia set in. She looked worn, tired, and clueless to what was going on, who she was or where she was. Julia clasped her fingers in front of her and then dropped her hands to her sides, sitting in front of her mother in the chair she had put there during her last visit._

"_Hey momma," Julia whispered, reaching out and taking a hold of her cold hands. "They need to turn up the heat in here," she muttered more to herself than her mother. "Today's Mother's Day, ya know," her mother still just stared at her. Julia bit her lip and looked down at her mother's hands, rubbing her thumbs of the back of her right hand. "I had to come today…I had to tell you happy Mother's Day," she licked the corner of her mouth and stared at the door. "Think they have Mother's Day in heaven?"_

_Julia looked back to her mother, seeing no recognition in her eyes and almost started crying. No, she had made it a point to not cry in front of her mother. It would only upset her. Julia kissed her mother's thumb and set her hands back in her lap, pushing herself back to her feet. She approached the window again, staring down at the streets._

"_I shouldn't have come today," she whispered. "I'm just hurting myself," she felt a tear slip down her cheek._

_Silence went through the room; Julia could faintly hear the beeping of a pager in the room next door. "I'm happy you came today, Julia."_

_Julia turned around to her mother. "Momma?"_

_Her mother stared at her and then pat the spot beside her on the bed. "Come sit beside me here," Julia nodded and did as she was told, taking a hold of her mother's hand. Her mother stared at the floor for the longest time. "Julia…I can't remember a lot of what I know these days…" she shook her head and looked over to Julia. "I can't remember your fathers face, I can't remember what I ate for breakfast, I can't remember the old home in Florida…but I will never forget you. You have to know that before I pass away."_

_Julia stared at her mother, wanting to cry. "Momma," she whispered before she hugged her mother, right cheek pressed against the side of her mother's breast._

_Her mother stroked her hair gently with boney hands. "I love you Julia…and don't _you _ever forget that."_

* * *

><p>Julia opened her eyes to a moldy ceiling.<p>

She felt so stuffed, like she had a head cold. She groaned as she sat up, rubbing her eyes with her knuckles and then she dropped her hands in front of her. After looked around for a moment, noticing her father slouched in a chair behind the front desk through the hippie beads he had tacked up, she pushed herself out of bed and headed towards the bathroom. She yawned as she shut the door and lowered the toilet seat; men were so gross, they couldn't just put down a damn toilet seat? After she did her business in the bathroom she found her jumpsuit under the bed and tugged it on. She tied her hair up and walked into the main part of the store, pulling her cigarette pack from her back pocket.

She opened the front door and stepped outside, letting it slam shut as she lit a cigarette. She flicked away the match she had used and stared out to the desert. The sun was barely up, only enough for a deep purple hue to settle across the sand. She sat in the crunchy folding chair Jeb had sitting out at all times, blowing out smoke from her nose. She wondered when Goggle was going to be up, he was probably watching her right now.

"Julia."

She didn't even jump when he said her name, just looked over at him. He was waiting on the corner of the building, sitting in the sand. "You are so fucking creepy," she took another drag from her cigarette and then she smiled. "How long have you been out here?"

He stared at her with those alien eyes for a moment and then he shrugged, looking down at the ground. "Sin' midnight," he muttered.

Julia nodded, closing her left eye as it was suddenly assaulted by cigarette smoke. "Well, you ready to take me to the village?"

Goggle looked back up to her, his warped face almost conveying some sort of innocence and then he nodded. "Wheneva you ready."

Julia stared at him for a moment before she nodded and bent over, putting on the cigarette against the ground beside her right boot. She stuffed the half burnt cigarette into the pack and then stood, dropping the pack into her back pocket. "Well then lets goooo."

He stood slowly, letting her get to his side before he started walking towards the desert. Jules looked up to the blazing sky and then squinted, stuffing her hands into her back pockets. They walked in silence for a long time, just the howl of the wind and the shuffle of sand under their boots. Jules eyes ran over Goggles back as she began to linger behind him and then she noticed him repeatedly trying to look back at her.

"What's up, Goggle?"

He jumped and then looked forward again. "Ya real quiet today…"

Jules shrugged, but he couldn't see her. "Didn't sleep so good. All I could feel were springs in my back the whole night. Bed is the most uncomfortable thing I have ever slept on."

Goggle hummed for a moment and then looked to their right, squinting his already beady eyes against the sun. "Bein watched," he muttered.

Jules didn't look up, didn't try to see if he was right. She trusted him. "By who though?"

"Lizar'," he continued to mutter. "Don' know what he wants."

"Maybe he's just a nosey mother fucker," Jules griped, finally deciding to look up. She couldn't see anything though, the sun was too bright. "Can he hear us?"

Goggle shook his head and looked forward again. "Nah. Long as we don' talk too loud."

Jules rolled her eyes. That didn't really answer her question. "That's um…that's sort of an obvious answer."

When he said nothing else, Jules peered around Goggle and to the path ahead. She noticed the dark curve of a cave and her heart gave an involuntary thump. Where the hell was he leading her? Her brow furrowed and then she reached out, taking a hold of the right elbow of his jumpsuit. He froze mid-step and then looked back at her, his beady eyes full of panic and confusion. For a crazy mutant, he sure was jumpy.

"Wait a minute, why are we headed towards a cave," she shook her head a little, letting go of his arm. "Why can't we just go through the desert?"

He shook his head. "Take too long," he pointed to the tunnel. "Quicka."

Jules stared at him. "I would rather take the long way around because of how creepy that tunnel looks."

He shook his head again and started walking. "No' really."

Jules sighed in exasperation, aggravated with his response and, at this point, him in general. But she followed behind him dutifully, her throat growing more and more dry the closer they got to the entrance. Once they were bathed in the cool coverage of the tunnel, she sighed at the relief from the burning sun, but then she squeaked when she realized how dark it was. She jumped forward a little, taking a hold of Goggle's had through the dark. He grunted at the contact and tried to shake her off, but she wouldn't let go and her fingers simply tightened to a painful hold every time he tried to pull away.

"Le' go."

Jules shook her head fiercely, her feet shuffling just behind his against the rocks beneath their feet. "No, you wanted to drag me in here, I get to hold your hand. Shut up and deal with it."

He didn't protest any further, but he wasn't exactly comfortable with the force she was pushing onto him. Jules could smell the dampness around them and it wasn't exactly a pleasing smell. That, mixed with the pungent odor of Goggle and Jules was plunged into intervals of held breath. She wandered if she did this enough, would she pass out? It sure as hell felt like it. But after her suffering, Jules saw the end of the tunnel. Ow she was worried about the bright ass son burning her eyes.

"God, I wish I had my shades," she muttered against the shoulder of his jumpsuit.

"Shades? We in shades…"

Jules chuckled. "No, not like shade. Sunglasses, so the sun doesn't burn my eyes."

He hummed in his throat but said nothing else, nothing to comfort or warn her when the sun hit her eyes. It was harsh, it burned and made her sort of sick but Jules just closed her eyes tightly and forced Goggle to a stop. She kept her eyes closed for a long time, holding onto his arm and waiting for the stinging to go away before she blinked her way through the rays. It was interesting, to gaze down over a village almost untouched by time since the fifties. It looked like a small town from the actual fifties. Only there were broken down cars and blood stains through the sand.

"You know," Jules finally let go of Goggles and swaggered on her feet for a moment. "If it wasn't so creepy out here, I would say your home town is real quaint."

Goggle looked at her incredulously but then shook his head and started down the rocks again. "Come…"

* * *

><p><em>Beautiful romance will come, just you wait. It won't be much long.<em>


	7. Chapter 7

"Come on!"

Julia grit her teeth and twisted on the ball of her right foot, her left leg coming up and the side of her calf hit the side of Pluto's arm. He pushed her back easily and she grinned, bare feet sliding through the gravel. She was dripping with sweat, bangs sticking to her forehead and her suit top was bunched around her waist. Her boots were set firmly beside the old swing set, where Ruby was swaying back and forth, watching the peculiar spectacle in front of her.

Julia grunted and charged at him again, pushing against the ground and she pulled both feet up, hitting him square in the chest. She flipped away from him sloppily, landing on the ground painfully but she grinned in triumph as Pluto stumbled back.

"Finally!"

She had been trying to get his feet to move for the past hour and this was the first time she had succeeded. It wasn't much, but it was enough to make her feel accomplished. Julia groaned as she pushed herself to her feet, swaying as she gained a head rush. She was caught on the elbow by Ruby, who was smiling at her crookedly. Julia pat her hand that was firm on her elbow and then looked over at Pluto. He was staring up at the sky, face blank and jaw slack on a buzzard circling them. Julia grimaced, staring at the circling bird as well, and then she sniffed her shirt.

She smelt horrible.

Her face twisted in a strange way and she looked back towards what was the matriarch's home. Lizard was scowling on the porch and Goggle was nowhere to be seen. Julia had figured he left in the middle of her and Pluto's sparring session.

If you want to call it that.

"How about we go back inside," Julia looked down at Ruby and then over to Pluto. "Thanks for that, Pluto. I haven't had that much fun in awhile."

It took him a moment, but he finally grinned at her and Julia had to fight a twinge of sickness in her gut at the sight of his teeth. It was horrible, but he couldn't help it so she ignored it for the most part. They started back towards the house, Julia trying to keep her eyes down as they passed Lizard. But it didn't work. He caught her by the elbow, Ruby not even pausing in fear of her older brother's cruel hand and Pluto…well, he was just Pluto. Julia looked down at him with a squared jaw, ready to fight if she had to. His cobalt eyes flickered around her face, his marred face making Julia feel something strange in her gut but she ignored it, fists clenched at his harsh touch.

"We fight tomorra," he stated, letting her go and standing.

Julia watched in stunned silence as he began to wander into the desert. When she finally came back from her thoughts she kicked off the porch, huffing towards him. He had gotten far in her momentary lapse of attention. She tackled him to the ground, grunting as his elbow jabbed into her side but she made sure he wouldn't get up. Her hair fell from a shaggy bun over her shoulder, hands braced flatly against his shoulder blades and she took in a few breaths, trying to catch her bearings. A beat of sweat dripped from the tip of her nose into his hair.

"What the hell are you talkin' about?"

He huffed, sand flying up around his face. "Wha' th' fuck ya think? We fightin, wanna see if ya really worth a shit."

"So what," she pushed her hair back, haphazardly tying it back into a bun before she finally scrambled off of him. He jumped up with a sour look on his face, but he wasn't attacking her so she took that as a test of good faith. "Didn' ya get enough lookin when I was messing with Pluto?"

"Plu'o didn' move," he made a valid point. "Wanna see if ya fast."

Julia stared at him for a long time, chest heaving thickly, and then she smiled at him. "Alright, I'm up for it. As long as you don't try to fuck me."

He shrugged and started out into the desert again. "Can' make any promises."

* * *

><p>Julia stepped into the house with a tired expression on her face, her bare feet wet with sweat that was coming from under her jumpsuit. She set her boots, which she had to walk to the other end of the village for, beside a small table with brown fake flowers on it. Beside that was a pile of keys and she just avoided that. Ruby and Big Mama were in the kitchen, muttering over a pot of something and their attention went to Julia when she sat down in a chair in the corner.<p>

Big Mama smiled and Ruby left the room, still muttering something under her breath. "Heard you knock' Pluto back," she hummed.

Julia smiled a wavy smile. "Yeah, barely though. My legs are killing me."

"Well, leas' you knocked 'im back."

Julia nodded though Big Mama wasn't focused on her and looked to the door. Val came in with a bouncing baby on her hip. The cleft lip drew Julia's attention and she jumped to her feet. Her sudden appearance made the babies face go blank. Julia had never seen a baby look so serious. Her eyes looked to Val, who had a guilty yet happy smile on her face.

"Her name is Cookie, of course I shouldn't have let Lizard name her."

"How the hell…I mean, I know where she came from, but…how?"

Val laughed at Julia's curiosity. "Let's go sit down first, my back hurts."

Julia nodded fiercely and let Val sit, Cookie in her lap, and Julia sat across from her. Val stretched her back a little, a grimace coming across her thin lips and then she sighed. "Guess it's been four months since my lil baby was born. Lizard is her daddy," Val sighed, smiling down at her child. "Believe it or not, he's so cute with her. It's really funny. And adorable."

Julia smiled. "I would love to see that."

"Well don' get yer hopes up," Big Mama chuckled, spooning some food onto a few plates that were set up on the table. "Lizar' don't let anyone see him with his baby."

Val nodded. "Mama is right, he doesn't let just anyone see him even _look _at his daughter."

Julia chuckled. "That's funny," she chewed on her lip a little. "Can I um…can I hold her?"

Val blinked and then smiled, nodding. "Yeah, here, you know how to hold her?"

Julia stood, wiping her hands on her pants. "Yes ma'am, I do. I have three younger cousins."

Val handed Cookie off to Julia, her lips twitching as she watched Julia cradle the young child to her chest, a look of calm passing over her face. Val folded her hands in her lap, listening to Julia coo to her daughter.

"Your daddy is a crazy person," Julia muttered. "He tried to kill me the day I met him."

Val chuckled and they all looked to the doorway when they heard the front door snap shut. It took a moment, but Goggle walked in, pausing when he noticed all eyes on him. "Wha'?"

All three women chuckled and Julia beamed, bouncing and swaying slightly. "I'm holding the baby, Goggle!"

He nodded, hesitating, eyes lingering on her for a moment before he hurried to Big Mama's side. Julia watched him from the corner of her eye, watching his lips move in a rapid pace against his mother's ear. What was he telling her about? He seemed horribly serious, but it wasn't like he was always happy or anything. Actually, Julia couldn't comment on his behavior because she didn't really know him. She wanted to get to know him. Was that weird? Yes, yes it was. But the gurgling baby in her arms was a pretty good distraction.

"Julia," she looked over to Big Mama as she called her name. The older bald mutant looked incredibly worried.

"Yes?"

Big Mama was wringing her hand in front of herself and Goggle was suddenly behind Julia. "Goggle is going to take you home, alright?"

Julia's brow furrowed and she tightened her arms around Cookie. "What? Why? It isn't even sun down yet."

Val stood, her worried look matching Big Mama's. "It can't be that time, can it?"

"It is, she needs to get out of here."

Julia looked between them. "I feel like I'm in a cheesey movie, what the hell is going on?"

Everyone looked over at her, Val looking exasperated, like she didn't want to be dealing with whatever was going on. Big Mama was just aggravated and worried. And Goggle was…well, Goggle. He was almost hiding behind Julia, shrugged in a corner. Julia looked back at him, a lost look on her face. She wanted to know what was going on, if everything was ok, what was happening to make everyone seem so edgy.

Big Mama sighed. "Is a family problem," she shook her head, gesturing towards Val. "Take Cookie inta you and Lizar's room. Now."

Val nodded and moved to stand in front of Julia, taking Cookie from her arms. "Sorry this had to ruin your moment," her smile was sad. "We'll do this again later, alright?"

Julia didn't have time to respond before Val was rushing out of the room. Julia's outstretched hand trembled for a moment and then she let it drop to her side, swaying for a moment. She sighed and looked over to Big Mama. "I guess this is the part where I go home?"

"No," Lizard walked into the room, brow deep in anger. "He here."

Did it suddenly get colder in here or what?

Julia took a step back. "I'm actually scared now."

"Should be," Lizard grunted, turning back to the foyer. "Papa want er'one outsi' now."

Big Mama stopped him. "Wait a minu', wha' about Julia?"

Lizard looked back at her, raising an eyebrow before he turned back to the door. "Bring 'er."

As the door clicked shut Goggle stepped to Julia's side, startling the young woman; she had forgotten he was there. "She can' go out there," he said firmly.

Big Mama shook her head. "Everyon' goin, jus keep 'er close to ya."

Julia's jaw went slightly slack as Big Mama hurried from the room; Val was right behind her, coming from behind the stair case. Julia stood still for a moment, fingers twitching at her sides, before she looked over at Goggle. He didn't look too happy either. She swallowed thickly and lifted her left hand up, placing it against his shoulder. He looked over at her, seeing her smile, and then nodded. He lead her to the door and she did as Big Mama said, keeping close to Goggle as they stepped out onto the porch. It was like a gathering of village people, like an old western. The whole little mutant family, minus Ruby and Big Brain, Julia didn't see Pluto either but she doubted he was far away.

And there, standing on the porch of the house opposite of the porch the family was on, was a rather large figure. Julia was instantly reminded of Pluto but the sick grin on his drool coated, puss shiny, lips was not one of ignorant splendor. It was just sick and twisted, ready for blood.

And he was looking at Julia dead on.

Papa Jupiter, she had met him as soon as she entered the village earlier that day, spoke first. His voice was gravely and thick, a hint of husk that gave Julia the heeby-jeebies. "Have company, Hades," he ground out painfully slow. "No business here."

Julia could feel the territorial tension in the air, the testosterone was almost breathable, and Julia moved closer to Goggle. Lizard was too far, Val not even standing close to him. She looked just as venomous. The hulking figure swayed for a moment, his tongue coming from his mouth and he licked his lips.

"Look feisty," Julia bit her tongue at the bile coming to her throat. "She claime'?"

"She is no one's ta claim, Hades," Papa Jupiter quipped. "Wha' ya want today?"

Hades' eyes flickered back to Jupiter, anger bubbling in his thick chest. "Need more grounds," he bit. "Hi' Pluto las' night, almos' chopped ma boy Letch in half."

Jupiter's steel eyes narrowed. "Big Brain."

Hades nodded slowly, watching Jupiter's slow walk towards Big Brain's home before he flicked his tongue at Julia. She watched him walk away before she hurried to the side of the porch and bent at the waist, vomiting into the sand. She felt smooth fingers pull her hair back and recognized Val's bare, scuffed, feet near her own. It took Julia a good fifteen minutes to stop vomiting, afterwards she felt tired and week. She had barfed up three days worth of food and drinks. The heat wasn't helping either. Val and Big Mama helped her into the house, to a couch in the living room, and lowered her down onto it with steady hands.

Val perched on the very edge of the couch, pushing back Julia's bangs while they waited for Big Mama to get a wet cloth. "That was Hades," Val muttered, though Julia didn't ask; she didn't want to talk about him, but Val would do it anyway. "He and his family live in the mines, the mountains. Usually only come out at night but it's there night to hunt so I guess Hades wanted to get this out of the way."

"'ere sweety," Big Mama came in, passing Val the rag. She looked down at Julia with sad eyes. "Sorry abou' that dear."

Julia listened to her shuffle out of the room while Val wiped at the corner of her mouth; it felt good to be babied for a minute. "He seems…"

"More vicious," Val shrugged. "It's cus they solely eat human flesh, at least here in the village they mix it up with some rabbit or something everyone once in awhile."

"Really," Julia muttered.

Val nodded, setting the rag to the side. "I'm gonna let you nap, you're staying here tonight alright? If you wake up before I go to sleep, I'll help you up to a room. If not, I'll set out a pillow and some blankets for you."

Julia nodded slowly, eyes closing. "Thank you Val…"

"No problem sweetheart."


End file.
